Shazam: In the Name of

On his robe and on his thigh he has a name written, King of kings and Lord of lords Revelation 19:16

In the movie Shazam, an old wizard (the movie’s namesake) who is the last of his kind is searching for an individual to whom he can pass on his great power. This power was meant to protect the world from the physical demonic manifestations of the seven deadly sins. Shazam finds his champion in the form of 14 year old Billy.

“Say my name so my powers may flow through you” Shazam says to Billy. Hesitant at first, Billy eventually obliges the strange old wizard and says his name. Shazam tells Billy that he has opened his heart to him and allowed him to reach his full potential. The physical manifestation is immediately evident after Billy says Shazam. He is transformed from a young teenager to a full grown muscular man with superpowers.

Many of us wish we could reach our full potential by simply calling on a name greater than our own. What many people don’t realize is there is a name above all other names. When we call on this name we are also able to reach our full potential.

In the Bible, a name was more than just an identifier. It was given as a representation of the identity of the individual. It was meant to speak to the present situation of an individual’s life or the future intended for that individual. Some individuals names were even changed to show a change in their life.

Adam was the first man created so his name appropriately means man or red earth. Abram was renamed Abraham meaning the father of many. This was after God promised his descendants would be as numerous as the stars. Naomi renamed herself Mara declaring God had made her life bitter, following the death of her husband and sons. Saul’s name was changed to Paul meaning little. This happened after he converted to faith in Jesus Christ and learned humility and became “smaller”. The most significant name meaning in the Bible was of course Jesus Christ. Jesus meaning savior and Christ meaning anointed one of God.

The Bible says in Philippians 2:9-11 “…God has highly exalted Him and bestowed on Him the name that is above every name,  so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.” Jesus opened his heart and sacrificed his life to save ours. As a result, Jesus now has the power to overturn the sentence of sin in our lives.

Salvation is provided only through the name of Jesus. Acts 4:12 says “And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.” Redemption can only be received by calling on the name of Jesus. Like Billy, when we call on the name of one who has power greater than our own, we are transformed and can live life using our full potential.

The act of calling on the name of Jesus goes beyond simply salvation. But it requires more action on our part. In the end of Shazam, Billy realizes that the power given when Shazam opened his heart to him, was only fully realized if Billy did the same. Billy opened his heart to his family and saw the power multiply. In the same way, once we call on the name of Jesus, we must surrender our heart to him if we want true life fulfillment.

This is ultimate the crux of Christianity, the definition of the Gospel. We were and are separated from God our creator because of the sin in our lives. Jesus came and lived a sinless life, but then took the punishment of our sin. When we call on the name above all names; He hears our cry and saves us. He transforms us into a new creation. When we have experienced this transformation we can truly say what a beautiful name is the name of Jesus.